Zigbee Home automation products are starting to become available for the avarage consumer now. This soon to be larger scale infusion should serve to get the word out of the possibilities to the average consumer which should help drive the knowledge of, hence the demand for these products fairly soon.
Company creates futuristic home network
Wireless links among entertainment, lighting, climate-control systems become more affordable.
By Nick Bunkley / The Detroit News
Control4
Location: Salt Lake City with dealers in Metro Detroit
Product: Wireless home networking
Price: $595 and up
To find a dealer or more information: www.control4.com
Source: Control4
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Wouldn't it be great if the living room lights automatically dimmed when you start watching a movie?
Or if smoke detectors could sound an alarm, show you the best escape route and turn off the furnace to stop smoke from spreading?
Networking different electronic devices within a home is already possible, and it's becoming less expensive than you might think.
One company, Salt Lake City-based Control4, recently began selling products that can wirelessly link home entertainment equipment and lighting for about $800. More expensive models allow connections to motorize blinds, climate controls and other devices.
"That would have historically been tens of thousands of dollars," said Eric Smith, Control4 co-founder and chief technology officer. "The focus of this is really to get it so regular people can afford it."
Control4 has signed up several dealers in Metro Detroit, including Audio Video Alternatives in Royal Oak. The store plans to set up a display next week to give customers a feel for the system's capabilities.
"It is a very cool product," said co-owner Jim Sanfemio. "It's like on the Jetsons."
Control4 was the first company to design its products around a new wireless networking standard called Zigbee, which has less power than the type commonly used to connect computers and printers but a much greater range. Zigbee is greatly expanding the benefits of home networking while dramatically reducing the cost, said Erik Michielsen, a research director at technology research firm ABI Research in Oyster Bay, N.Y.
Because it's wireless, existing homes can be retrofitted without having to cut into walls. As costs come down even more, Michielsen said, consumers will be able to pick up home automation equipment at electronics retailers like they would buy a TV or microwave.
"A lot of this home automation stuff has been out there for years but it's been available only for technology enthusiasts or luxury homes," Michielsen said. "Now you're working toward a more standardized, plug-and-play environment."
The proliferation of wireless computer networks and digitization has paved the way for Control4's products. Many consumers now are accustomed to playing digital music files and using digital video recorders instead of carrying around videotapes and CDs.
During a demonstration to Detroit-area dealers last week, Smith, who previously owned a company that networked electronics in many celebrities' homes, showed how users of Control4's products can select any CD or DVD from their collection with a touch-panel display or remote control. Music can be sent wirelessly to different rooms, and starting a movie can cause the lights to dim and blinds to close.
Most actions are controlled from a central server that forms the backbone of the system. To control lighting, standard switches must be replaced by Control4's version, which costs $99 each.
Kurt Von Eberstein, manager of Digital by Design, a custom home theater shop in Southfield, said Control4's products perform similarly to systems made by AMX and Creston Electronics, which he has installed in million-dollar-plus homes. He's hoping to persuade area builders to include Control4 networking setups in new houses as an add-on similar to hardwood floors or a fireplace.
"It's perfect for a level of the home-buying public that has been interested in this in the past, but when I have told them the pricing they've had to back down," Von Eberstein said. "I'd love to do it at my house."
You can reach Nick Bunkley at (313) 222-2293 or nbunkley@detnews.com.
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